#1146. The church is a family that’s born of God (17/9/24)

Welcome to the Come to Jesus Daily Devotional. Today, in our God’s Vision for the church series, we consider how the church is not only an adopted family - the theme of yesterday’s devotional - but she is also a family that’s born of God.

To watch this devotional, follow the link below:

https://youtu.be/z0MmMr0fDPs

‘Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.’ (John 1:12-13)

John 1:12–13

A conceived child inherits 50% of their DNA from each parent, creating a unique genetic blueprint. The combination of genes from both parents determines everything from physical traits like eye colour and height to genetic predispositions for certain health conditions. Genetic recombination plays a key role in making every individual unique. During conception, the child’s DNA is a mix of the mother’s and father’s, but the arrangement of genes is shuffled, ensuring siblings from the same parents can have different genetic makeups. It’s miraculous the way that every child is formed - taking on the nature of his or her parents in a unique way, so Christians, who are born of the Spirit, take on the nature of their divine Heavenly Father.

Yesterday, we reflected on the idea of adoption; God has adopted us into His family and this is, principally a legal idea. Today, I want us to go further as we see that a Christian doesn’t just have a new legal standing as God’s child, we also have a new nature as God’s children. Christians have been ‘born of God’. The Holy Spirit has raised us from spiritual death by the resurrection power of Christ.

To become a child of God means that we have been born of God and, therefore, have a new heart and have a new love for our Father. Someone who has become a child of God in this sense will bear the fruit of the Spirit in their lives as they take on the ‘family likeness’ of Jesus. We are told of this transformation:

‘For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.’ (Romans 8:14)

Romans 8:14

Children of God love their Father. John speaks of how our new Spirit-given nature leads to a desire to please the Father and how this in turn flows over into loving our church family:

‘No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.  This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child, nor is anyone who does not love their brother and sister.’ (1 John 3:9-10)

1 John 3:9–10

Response

God’s vision for the church is of a community who have been born again by the Spirit. Only those who have been raised to new life are a part of God’s church. This is a radical view of the nature of the church. Can you and I say that you know that you have been born again? Jesus said to Nicodemus the religious leader:

‘Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again…”’ (John 3:3)

John 3:3

To be born again one must repent and believe the gospel. This new life will then be evidenced by a new ‘hunger and thirst after righteousness’ and a new love for our heavenly Father and our church family.